Need Help In Transitioning to 5x5

arabianhorselover

I was thinking that I was supposed to start with the bar just on top of my feet. Maybe I'm just remembering that you are supposed to return all the way to the floor after each lift?

well done! for the pendlay row you may need to prop the bar on some weights to bring it up to the right height. Otherwise you are making it unnecessarily hard for yourself!

arabianhorselover

I know I can't spot reduce, but by toning the muscles on my belly, at least it won't stick out as far. And I really want to minimize the flabbiness of my upper arms by having as much tricep muscle as I can get!

I plan to do the workouts on M-W-F, so will be resting in between except for walking.

I did the entire Workout A last night. I think it went pretty well. I am somewhat sore today, but not bad.

For the squats I managed to do the 45 pound bar. I thought it would be too hard, since I had been doing some squats with just my body weight, and they seemed hard. May not have had perfect form, but I did it!

For the bench press, I used a 25 pound bar, which was enough. I have never done the bench press before, so will need some time to get the proper form, which I sure don't have right now!

For the barbell row I also used the 25 pound bar with 10 pounds on each end - so 45 pounds. I had trouble getting the bar all the way up to my chest, so I know I had plenty of weight. I got through all the reps, but need to work on form

It was nice to not have to do all those different machines. I felt good about doing it, and plan to do Workout B tomorrow.

Good for you! Stick with it - you will see and feel the results. My 2¢:

As far as losing gains strength-wise, you won't. Even if, for example, you used to do 60 lbs on the OHP machine, you will be working harder and getting stronger doing a 45 lb. OHP with a barbell. Don't compare the numbers from the machines to the BB weights, b/c they really don't compare.

As far as losing gains fitness-wise, if that's a concern keep doing cardio! Find the balance that works for you. Right now i lift 2ce a week, do kettlebells (which is a combo strength/cardio workout) 1ce a week, and do cardio at least 4 times a week (bootcamp/HIIT workouts and running). Other people do ZERO cardio and lift 3 times/week, and are meeting their goals. There is no one way to incorporate SL, and you just have to find what helps you work towards your goals.

As far as keeping up with the machines - in theory, you could do this as accessory work, or as something on a recovery day, however:
1) FYI, you can't spot reduce, and if your concern is that you thighs carry extra weight, or upper arms, no amount of machine work focusing on those areas is going to reduce the fat there. So, if that is your concern, you would do better to just work towards lowering you body fat and be patient - it will come off those areas
2) You must allow your body some recovery between lifting sessions, or you will sabotage your improvements and cause injury. As you squat heavy you will be working the heck out of your inner thighs - for me, I had a few weeks of having to baby my groin/inner thighs as they adapted to bearing that weight. Doing specific machine work there may be a bad idea.
3) so, keep your machine work to stuff you *really* aren't working hard in your lifting - and that may take you a few sessions to figure out. Be willing to adapt over time, and don't get too stuck on the notion that there's only one way to make progress.

I totally get the fear that you have a system that's working now and don't want to lose it. Give SL 4-6 consistent weeks - it will work, and if you don't like it, it's not like you spent those weeks sitting on the couch! You won't backslide by changing things up, so long as you keep working!